The Adapter’s Advantage: Jennifer Stanley on Mastering the Omnichannel Sale

• Updated on: 2022-06-16
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Welcome to The Adapter’s Advantage: Breakthrough Moments that Lead to Success.

In episode 47, McKinsey Partner Jennifer Stanley shares how B2B buyers have changed, what companies must do to keep up, the importance of delivering an omnichannel experience, and the value of the “Rule of Thirds.”

Jennifer Stanley is a partner at McKinsey & Company where she leads the Sales & Channel Management Practice for North America. She has over 20 years of experience specializing in go-to-market (GTM) transformations for B2B companies in a wide range of highly competitive industries, with particular emphasis on complex, omnichannel ecosystems.

From the design of omnichannel sales strategy and architecture to the reorganization of the sales force, including digital sales, strategic key-account planning, and the development of capability-building programs, Jennifer brings a rich foundation of practical experience and insights from years of McKinsey research and client work.

Prior to joining McKinsey, Jennifer held various sales and marketing positions in a travel-related organization while concurrently completing her higher education. She also taught sales management and organizational leadership at the university level.

Listen as Jennifer discusses why sales must deliver an omnichannel experience, embrace new technology to meet buyers’ needs, and adopt agile ways of working.

Host Mark Magnacca: “How can organizations future-proof their sales and marketing strategy?”

Jennifer Stanley: “It’s a complex function, but if I were to give one answer, it’s around technology.

“If the sales manager is the force multiplier for skill building, technology is the force multiplier for your entire organization and for your customers’ experience.

“When I say technology, I don’t just mean CRM. That’s an important piece, and we know salespeople spend a lot of time engaging with that, but I mean [sales reps must have] the ability to use and feel confident using multiple technical platforms.

“If you have to give a presentation or a proposal in any of the virtual rooms available, make sure your sales teams are ready to do that. If you have a chatbot on your website, make sure it can answer technical questions.

“Sales executives must step back and ask the question: ‘How much of my sales capacity could I put on any digital platform today?’ Then, depending on what the answer is, they can have a conversation about the next stage of training and what they need help with.”

Our podcast features leaders from sales, training, and industry who share their personal journeys of transformation and how they are adapting to an ever-changing environment. As your host, I’ll introduce you to some of the most interesting and inspiring people I’ve met over the last 20 years.

The conversations dive into the ups and downs of their journey. Our guests focus on inflection points—the aha moments that, in retrospect, had a critical impact on their success. These interviews will leave you with practical, real-world advice that you can apply to your life.

Don’t miss an episode. The Adapter’s Advantage is available on Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, Spotify, and TuneIn.